


A Sideways Detour

by rae_marie



Category: Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (Big Finish Audio), The Property of Hate
Genre: Gen, and guess what?, and it possibly takes the prize for the most self-indulgent thing i've ever written, blair kenneth verse, i make no apologies, i wrote the draft of this between midnight and 2am
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-09
Updated: 2019-06-09
Packaged: 2020-04-23 12:30:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19151074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rae_marie/pseuds/rae_marie
Summary: To replace a part for the TARDIS, Blair and the Master must stop in another world, and it's not like anything Blair's ever seen before.





	A Sideways Detour

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TheBigCat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBigCat/gifts).



> For Blair, this takes place somewhere between 'I shall return, if you need me.' and _Time & Tide Volume One_. For Hero, it takes place some time between nightfall in the Market, and her falling asleep ~~yes I mean she snuck out of bed to go exploring and I love her for it~~

They emerged from the room. 

‘So it’s never broken until now?’ Blair asked. The Master shook his head. 

‘It is an extremely rare part, and the fact that it must be replaced makes me uneasy; it is always risky getting a new one.’ 

Blair frowned. ‘....what do you mean….?’ 

The Master put a hand on her shoulder. ‘Never fear, Blair; it is not the world  _ itself _ that is dangerous, it is simply that it is located  _ between _ worlds, and it makes landing difficult, however, we need this part for the TARDIS to function properly, so we must land there whether it is difficult or not.’ 

Blair’s eyes were wide. ‘Ohhh….where are we  _ going? _ ’ 

The Master smiled strangely, and they continued down the corridor towards the Console Room. 

‘I do not know how to explain it, precisely,’ he said, ‘but I suppose one could say it is the land of make-believe?’ 

Blair gasped. 

‘I suppose that interests you….?’ the Master chuckled. 

‘Yes yes  _ YES! _ ’ Blair danced a little. ‘ _ Natch _ it does!’ 

The Master put an arm around her. ‘Then I am glad.’ 

They came into the Console Room, and the Master went over to the Console and started programming coordinates, even more carefully than usual. Blair leaned over and watched him, his fingers nimbly skipping over the buttons and turning the dials to precise settings, the TARDIS whirring and beeping as the coordinates were set. After a while, he reached over and deliberately pulled the dematerialisation lever. 

The TARDIS sounded weaker than normal, and Blair frowned. 

_ I hope this works…. _ she thought. 

The TARDIS quietly landed, and the Master checked the scanner. He nodded. 

‘Everything is in order.’ He smiled at Blair. ‘Shall we go?’ 

Blair nodded eagerly. 

*****

The air felt….. _ strange _ when they stepped out of the TARDIS. She didn’t know how to describe it, but it didn’t feel like anything she’d ever experienced on any planet. 

‘Uncanny, is it not?’ the Master said. Blair nodded. 

‘Yeah….it’s…. _ weird _ . But not in a bad way?’ 

‘Mm. Do you notice anything else peculiar, by any chance….?’ 

Blair looked around, and then she realised what she was seeing. Everywhere, there was colour and light and all  _ kinds _ of different creatures - some ghostly, some almost solid - milling about and buying things and talking and minding their own business and….

‘ _ Woah _ ….’ she breathed. 

The Master’s voice had a smile in it. ‘Come; we must go to the Emporium.’ 

*****

It was even brighter inside the “Emporium” than the place they had landed had been, but an even greater surprise to Blair was the gigantic hedgehog they were greeted by. She found her quite intimidating, and half hid behind the Master while they talked. The Master gave the hedgehog something sparkling and mysterious-looking, and she gave him an ethereal little circuit. 

There were some other people in the background; a giant grasshopper, a dress form wearing a hat….and then there was someone who possibly looked human, and half her age, sitting with a TV-headed man, and Blair was about to go talk to them when the Master squeezed her hand and said,

‘We must go; Nightfall is coming.’ 

They left the Emporium; everyone was rushing away to shelter. Blair stopped, and the Master stopped as well. 

‘Is it dangerous, being out after Nightfall?’ Blair asked. 

‘I am not certain, although most people here seem to think it is, so it is safe to assume it is at least a little risky.’ 

‘The TARDIS is nearby in case we need to run - can we just…. _ watch _ for a minute? Please?’ 

‘Yes. That is fair enough.’ 

They stood for a while, watching everyone dash into the shadows and the lights dim, until finally, everything was dark.

Blair sighed. ‘That was beautiful,’ she said. She smiled up at the Master. ‘Thank you.’ 

‘You are most welcome; shall we go back now?’ 

‘Yeah, I gue - ‘

Blair yelped; something was tugging at her jumper in the dark. 

‘’Scuse me….?’ came a small voice. 

There was a rustling of fabric, then a light from the torch end of the TCE; it glinted off the brass buttons on the Master’s overcoat. Blair turned and saw the human she had noticed before, staring up at her with wide eyes. 

‘Oh….hello!’ she said. ‘Who are you?’ 

‘I’m….’ the girl frowned, then scrunched up her eyes, then almost burst into tears. ‘....I don’t remember.’ 

Blair’s eyebrows shot up. She crouched down to the girl’s level. 

‘Hey, are you lost?’ she asked. The girl looked up at her.

‘Sort of….RGB asked me to be a Hero, and now I can’t get home ‘cos I don’t ‘member who I am.’ 

Blair looked up at the Master. 

_ Can you get her memories back for her? _ she thought to him. 

The Master crouched down as well and smiled at the girl. 

‘Do you mind if I take a look through your memories and try to find what’s missing?’ he asked. The girl’s eyes widened. 

‘Please?’ 

Without another word, the Master gently touched the side of her head and closed his eyes. After a minute or so, he frowned, and then slowly, he blinked and looked quizzically at her. 

‘I….am very sorry, my dear, but it is simply…. _ not there _ . All that is there is that you are….”The Hero.”’ 

_ What? _ Blair thought. The girl looked like she was about to cry again, and it was all Blair could stand. She reached out and scooped her up in her arms.

‘We’re adopting her,’ she said, quite pointedly. The Master smiled and raised an eyebrow. 

‘Oh….?’ 

‘Yes. She’s in trouble, and I’m not gonna stand by and watch her suffer.’ 

‘I….I can’t,’ Hero said. 

They both looked at her. 

‘Why not?’ Blair asked. 

‘Because the world needs me; RGB needs me - I’m  _ the Hero. _ ’ 

Blair tilted her head. ‘But don’t you want to go home? The TARDIS - that’s our ship - she’s super smart - maybe she could find your home! And….er….this probably sounds silly coming from me, but - ‘ she quickly looked askance at the Master, then back at Hero ‘ - aren’t you kinda young to have the weight of the world on your shoulders? You kinda don’t have to solve the world’s problems, and definitely not on your own.’ 

Hero looked at the ground for a while, then around, then at the Master. 

‘It is your choice, child,’ he said. 

She thought for a minute longer, then looked at Blair. 

‘I don’t think I should go,’ she said. ‘RGB’s my friend….and I’m mad at him….but he needs me. And Assok too.’ 

Blair smiled sadly at her, then gave her a hug before putting her down. 

‘Do you need help finding RGB and Assok?’ she asked. Hero shook her head. 

‘Thank you though,’ she said, to both of them. 

The Master nodded. ‘We wish you good fortune in your journey.’ 

‘Yeah, best of luck,’ Blair whispered. 

Hero waved goodbye and disappeared into the shadows, back towards the Emporium, then reemerged and stared at the Master for a moment.

‘I….I love your buttons….’ she said, then disappeared again. 

The Master chuckled, then Blair felt a hand around hers and she looked up at him. 

‘We have been out in the dark long enough,’ he said. ‘We must leave.’ 

*****

‘Will she be all right?’ Blair asked, once they were safe inside the TARDIS. 

‘I do not know, Blair, but I most certainly hope so. I  _ will _ say that she reminded me of someone rather resourceful and intelligent that I know, so I am certain she will be fine.’ 

Blair looked at him quizzically for a moment, then it struck her what he had meant, and she threw her arms around him in a hug. 

‘Thanks,’ she said, rather muffledly, into tweed fabric. She felt the Master ruffle her hair, then heard the sound of the demat lever being pulled. 

‘We shall materialise in the Vortex, then install the new part so we can proceed. Does that sound good to you?’ 

‘Yes,’ Blair said. 

‘Very well, then. Onwards.’ 

The Time Rotors rose and fell, familiar as they always were.


End file.
